The Touch of a Friend
by Princess Seki
Summary: Hiei finds Kuwabara wandering, badly hurt after a fight, but the red-head refuses help and staves off the little fire demon's questions. What is Kuwabara hiding? Why does Hiei care so much? Hiei x Kuwabara
1. Chapter 1

A/N: A new story! Happiness! This one concerns the relationship between Hiei and Kuwabara (something I find _adorable_ when done correctly). It will most likely be rather short, but at least that means less suspense for my readers! In any case, this was written as a stress-relief (Hallmark will be the death of me...), but I liked it so I kept going. I have the next chapter done, but I'm not going to post it until I see if this chapter is well-received. That means... REVIEW!! Enjoy!

Warnings: None to speak of

Disclainmer: I do not own YYH or anything relating to it. All credit should go where credit is due: Yoshihiro Togashi.

* * *

Silently, Hiei flitted from tree to tree in the park, stalking a particularly acrobatic squirrel. He paused suddenly, appalled by how pathetically bored he was, and once again considered going back to Makai. After all, it wasn't like he really had a reason to stay in the Ningenkai; merely a convenience. He could sleep at Kurama's when it rained and steal food from Yusuke's when he couldn't find any good prey. The Reikai Tantei hadn't had a mission in months, and it didn't look like any apocalyptic demons were going to be popping up any time soon… Hiei half-turned towards the direction of the nearest portal, but paused as he heard a small hiccup from below him and smelled the unmistakable scent of Kazuma Kuwabara… beneath the overpowering scent of alcohol, of course. The little fire demon wrinkled his nose against the smell and was about to take off towards the portal when he caught sight of Kuawabara's aura… it was a sickly grayish color, not at all like his normal, bold blue. He paused in mid-step and ended up breaking the branch that supported him, falling in an unceremonious heap at Kuwabara's feet. The other boy looked down in surprise, and a wide grin spread across his face.

"W'll hey, Hiei!" The koorime rose, brushing himself off, and settled into his usual scowl.

"You're slobbering drunk, you ingrate, shouldn't you be in a bathroom somewhere, throwing up the contents of your last four meals?" It took a second for Kuwabara to grasp Hiei's words, but he only grinned wider once he did.

"Naw, I c'n handle more'n this!" He threw an arm around Hiei's shoulders, which the fire master quickly shook off, and leaned down to whisper in his ear conspiratorially. "I c'n out drink Urameshi anyday!" Hiei wrinkled his nose against the overpowering scent and stepped back.

"Go home, Kuwabara."

"No." The quick response startled Hiei; he glanced up into the other boy's black eyes and found them burning with some emotion Hiei didn't recognize. He took another step back, loath to be part of that emotion or anything it entailed, and saw for the first time how ragged Kuwabara looked. His normally pressed school uniform was wrinkled, dirty, and slightly bloodstained. His hair, normally gelled into some odd formation of curls, was disheveled and streaked with dirt. His shoes and belt were gone completely.

Quickly, Hiei added up the days in his head and determined that it was Sunday. He didn't know much about humans or their lifestyles, but he was fairly certain that Yusuke and Kuwabara never wore their uniforms on Sundays…

"What happened to you? You're a mess."

"Got in a fight... Why's it matter to you, shortstuff?" There was a clearly defensive tone to Kuwabara's voice now.

"It doesn't," replied Hiei, his tone clipped. He turned to head for the portal after all, but paused as a new scent drifted to him hidden among the other, stronger scents… the scent of fresh blood. The fire demon turned back to see Kuwabara leaning tiredly against a tree, his hands crossed over his stomach. He frowned.

"You're bleeding…"

"So?" the human growled, clutching his stomach harder, "I'll be fi-" He cut off in mid-sentence with a groan and fell forward, completely unconscious. Only then did Hiei notice the growing stain on the seat of Kuwabara's uniform pants. His eyes widened slightly as he stepped forward to confirm his suspicions. One quick sniff told him all he needed to know; Kuwabara had been violently raped.

Scooping the larger human into his arms, Hiei hesitated in a moment of indecision; should he take him to a hospital, Yusuke's house, or Kurama's house? Well, he didn't know where there was a hospital, so that left the latter two options. Kurama's house it was; Hiei was certain Yusuke would have no idea what to do. But, before he had taken two steps, Kuwabara's eyes fluttered open.

"What're you doin'? Put me down!" Hiei frowned down at the injured boy in his arms.

"You've been hurt, you fool. I'm taking you to Kurama's so he can heal you."

"NO!" The red-haired human writhed suddenly, catching Hiei off guard, and rolled to the ground with a grunt. He struggled to his feet and staggered a few steps before he fell again. Hiei watched, perplexed, and waited until the psychic wore himself out again.

"Are you quite finished?" he muttered sourly, hefting his injured teammate into his arms again. Kuwabara spasmed suddenly and let out a choked cry. In spite of himself, Hiei looked anxiously down at the boy's face. Kuwabara was in agony; perhaps Hiei had been a bit too rough… "Sorry…"

"Put me down!" the red-head demanded again, tears flowing freely down his face now. "I don't need help, lemme go!"

"No," said Hiei, calmly. "You're injured, I'm taking you to Kurama's house and that's the end of it." He took off in the direction of Kurama's residence and the familiar sight of the house appeared moments later. Kuwabara was still protesting loudly and struggling with all his might, but he was in no condition to fight Hiei off. "Quiet down, Kuwabara, you're only injuring yourself further." The fire master was beginning to grow annoyed as his teammate resisted his help. "I said stop struggling!" He gave the young man a firm shake and Kuwabara gasped in pain. Anxiously, Hiei searched his teammate's face for the source of the pain. Perhaps shaking him had not been the best idea… _Kurama… come outside._

Up in his room, Kurama jerked as he heard Hiei's voice sound in his head; Hiei usually didn't contact him telepathically. If he wanted something he just jumped through the window and asked in person. Rising from his desk, Kurama walked over to his window and glanced down curiously. Hiei was standing on the lawn with a bedraggled Kuwabara cradled awkwardly in his arms. He gasped and dashed down the stairs two at a time, then out the front door.

"Kuwabara! Hiei, what happened to him?!" Hiei opened his mouth to reply, but Kuwabara growled out an answer before he could.

"Nothin', 'm fine. Put me DOWN, Hiei." Hiei did not loosen his hold in the slightest. _Kuwabara was badly hurt in a fight of some sort… I think he was raped. Can you help him?_ Kurama's eyes widened slightly, but, bless him, he kept his face carefully blank. Verdant eyes roamed over Kuwabara's ravaged body, noting the dirtiness of the uniform and the lack of shoes and belt. _Something_ had certainly happened to him.

"Kuwabara, I'd feel better if you'd let me examine you. Please, for my own peace of mind."

"I told ya, 'm fine. I don't need no fuckin' examination." Kurama's mouth tightened into a thin line. Apparently his friend didn't trust him to examine him without making judgments…

"Kazuma, please…" Hopefully using Kuwabara's first name would help… The red-head scowled angrily at his would-be healer.

"Fuck off, 'm fine. LET ME GO, HIEI!" He thrashed again, so Hiei set him down. Immediately, the psychic attempted to get up, but he fell to the ground again with a yelp and a curse.

"What happened to you? Who did this, Kazuma?" Kurama was kneeling by his side anxiously, one hesitant hand extended to offer help if his teammate wanted it.

"Did what?! Nothing happened, stop making assumptions! And stop calling me Kazuma!" He batted the helpful hand away from him, a snarl on his face. "Both of you just leave me alone!" He heaved himself to his feet and began to stagger away from the concerned pair of demons.

"Kuwabara, wait!" The red-head stopped, but did not turn. Kurama flitted to his side and handed him a small pouch of various Makian leaves. "If you mix these all together with water and spread it on your wounds, it will help them heal without scars." Kuwabara scowled.

"I told you, I'm-"

"All the same, please take them." Kurama's voice was firm but slightly pleading at the same time. He pressed the pouch into his friend's hand, then turned and walked away. Kuwabara stared at the little pouch in his hand, then shrugged and pocketed it. He began walking again, ignoring the blinding pain in his backside. He could feel Kurama's and especially Hiei's eyes on his back as he walked. Let them make what assumptions they wanted; they had no proof of anything. He forced himself to keep walking until he was well out of sight of Kurama's house, then gave himself over to the pain and collapsed on a park bench with a soft groan. The last thing he noted, before consciousness left him, was a shock of black hair with a pure white streak in it.

-

Consciousness returned slowly as different parts of Kuwabara's body began sending him signals. He was warm, and he felt… clean. He opened his eyes blearily and tried to focus on his surroundings. With a groan he began to sit up, and Hiei was at his side instantly, scowling as usual.

"Careful; don't irritate your wounds. I just finished bandaging them." Kuwabara gasped and ripped back the blanket that had been draped over him. He was nearly naked beneath, only a pair of boxers he didn't recognize were left on him.

"Wh-what did you do?! I said I was fine!"

"No," Hiei disagreed, "you're _not_ fine. You were raped, there's no use denying it. What happened?" He realized too late that his blunt words might come off as callous.

"It's none of your business! Stay out of it!" Kuwabara yanked the blanket around him and attempted to stand, but Hiei stopped him with a firm hand on his shoulder.

"Don't make me knock you out," he threatened, one hand balling into a fist by his side. Kuwabara glared at him.

"Let me up!"

"Tell me what happened." Hiei's hold did not loosen.

"None of your business happened. Fuck off." Hiei frowned.

"Kuwabara, I have no problem with profanity, but normally you only use it sparingly. Now I know someone hurt you, and I want you to tell me who it was and where to find him."

"Why do you care?" The question was spat venomously, but Hiei paused to consider it anyway. Why _did_ he care?

"I'm… not sure," he said, finally, "most likely because you are my teammate and I see weakness in myself when my team is weak. I abhor weakness." Kuwabara glared at him.

"Well sorry to make your team weak. Don't worry, I won't mention it. No one will know."

"You're missing the point," replied Hiei, irritated. "I will fix the weakness by destroying the one who caused it. Give me his name and location or I will lift it directly from your mind. You know I can…" He trailed off, letting the threat hang dangerously between them. Kuwabara folded his arms obstinately.

"It's not your business; you don't need to know. It won't happen again, just let it go."

"Just give me a name and I'll let it go."

"… I can't do that." Hiei stared at him, then frowned again.

"Fine, have it your way. Go running back to him and get raped again; see if I care." He turned away from Kuwabara, releasing him and leaving the room swiftly. The psychic lay still for a moment, unsure about Hiei's reaction. Why was the fire master so angry about this? He didn't care about anyone but himself and, maybe, Kurama. Hiei's voice from the other room startled him from his thoughts. "Yusuke wanted to know why you weren't in school. I didn't give him specifics, but I told him you were hurt in a fight. He's coming by to see you today." Kuwabara's stomach sank to his toes and his heart began to race. Without a word, he blacked out once again.

-

"Kuwabara… Kuwabara, wake up, man!" The human's eyes fluttered fitfully at the sound of that familiar voice, and his body tensed immediately for attack, but it never came. He opened his eyes to find himself staring directly into the chocolate-brown orbs that belonged to Yusuke Urameshi; his best friend… and rapist. "There you are. Damn, dude, you had me worried!" Kuwabara forced a weak smile.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just napping, you know." Yusuke was sober now; he had no recollection of the violent sex he had forced his friend through when he was drunk. Yusuke grinned and punched him playfully in the shoulder; Kuwabara flinched away from the blow.

"Hiei says you got your ass handed to you in a fight. What happened, were there _two_ little kids instead of one?" He snickered at his own joke and Kuwabara forced another half-hearted smile.

"Yeah, somethin' like that…" Yusuke raised a brow inquisitively.

"Never thought I'd see the day where Kazuma Kuwabara let me rag on him without threats against my life. What happened to you?" Kuwabara cringed when he heard his first name, spoken so easily by his best friend. That name had been crooned out breathlessly not long ago; the name that echoed in his head as Yusuke violently thrust himself into him over and over and over…

"Nothin', I'm fine. Just a little street fight that got kinda out of hand. They were only human; I couldn't justify using my powers on them." In truth, he _had_ tried to use his powers against Yusuke… but the smaller boy had beaten at him until he could not longer access his spirit energy…

"Well get your ass up outta bed! Let's go to the arcade or somethin'!" He grabbed Kuwabara's forearm and heaved him to his feet. Kuwabara yelped and collapsed on the ground, shaking as waves of pain raced through him. "Kuwabara! Are you ok?"

"J-just a little sore," he muttered, not meeting Yusuke's eyes. "Go on without me, I'll kick your ass at Goblin City some other time." Yusuke frowned, studying his friend, then shrugged and lifted him back into bed.

"Whatever you need, man. I'll let you heal. Call me, 'kay?" Kuwabara nodded, pulling the sheet back over himself and curling back into his pillow to sleep. Yusuke stared at him a moment longer, then took his leave. As soon as he was gone, Hiei was at Kuwabara's bedside, frowning.

"I heard you scream. Didn't I tell you NOT to aggravate your wounds?!" He ripped the sheet away from Kuwabara's huddled form, despite the boy's protests, and reached for his boxers to check his wounds. He was shocked when the red-head blasted him away with a burst of spirit energy.

"Stop it! I'm fine, leave me alone."

"Nonsense, you're being ridiculous." Undeterred, Hiei approached the bed again, ignoring Kuwabara's struggles, and reached for the boxers once more.

"Hiei, dammit, stop! I don't need help! Get off of me, you don't have to do this!" Hiei ignored him, pinning his flailing hands with one arm and ripping the boxers down with the other. Kuwabara froze, then burst into angry, humiliated tears. Hiei stared at him, eyes wide with shock. He had no idea what to do with someone when they cried; comforting was not his forte. He decided to ignore the tears and continue checking the wounds. They had opened and were bleeding again. Hiei grumbled an oath under his breath and turned to go get more medical supplies, but a hand caught at the back of his shirt. He looked back to see Kuwabara, still sobbing pitifully, clutching at his shirt just for something to hold on to. Hiei frowned and pried the fingers away.

"I'll be right back. Stay still." And he flitted to the bathroom to grab the supplies. Kuwabara's sobs were audible, even in the bathroom, and Hiei felt some odd new emotion stirring in him. Was it… pity? No, not pity… Something he couldn't identify. He shrugged it off and returned to the bedroom. Kuwabara was still crying, but he was facing the wall now, his back to Hiei. Shrugging, Hiei set about cleaning and re-bandaging the wounds. Kuwabara gasped as the stinging cleaner burned on his open wounds, his sobs redoubling. Hiei felt the stirrings of that strange new emotion again, but suppressed them and continued his work. When he was finished, he turned to clean up the supplies, but paused as he heard words through Kuwabara's tears.

"I c-can't d-do this. I-I can't f-face him." Hiei frowned and spun back to face his ward. Kuwabara was facing him again, his tear-stained face in agony.

"Can't face who?" Kuwabara shook his head, incoherent again through his tears. Hiei turned to clean up the supplies again, but stopped when he heard Kuwabara's voice.

"D-don't leave me…" There was that new emotion again, ripping through his chest and causing him almost physical pain. Hiei frowned, gathering the supplies into his arms and taking a step towards the bathroom.

"I'm not leaving you; I'm just going to clean up these supplies. I'll be right back." The red-head whined something unintelligible, then curled into a little ball on the bed. Hiei made good on his word, and was back at Kuwabara's side literally moments later. Unsure what Kuwabara needed, he waited silently by the bedside. The red-head didn't seem to know he was there until he suddenly shot out a hand and closed it around Hiei's. Ruby eyes widened in spite of Hiei's natural disposition, but he allowed his hand to be clenched in his teammate's. It seemed like companionship was what Kuwabara needed right now… Well, Hiei could do that. He remained standing, silent, at Kuwabara's bedside as the red-head cried himself into silence. Finally, after a few final gasps, the crying ceased and Kuwabara's grip loosened on Hiei's hand. Hiei made to pull his hand away, but the other boy looked up suddenly, his eyes bright.

"It was Yusuke." Hiei froze, his face a blank mask of shock. Yusuke had… raped Kuwabara? Nonsense! And yet… he couldn't doubt the young man looking at him with those earnest eyes.

"Yusuke…"

"He didn't mean to hurt me!" Kuwabara was rushing to excuse his friend now. Hiei didn't buy it, but he listened. "He was drunk, he didn't know what he was doing. It was just a big mistake, that's all. No harm, no foul. Besides, he doesn't remember any of it."

"Yusuke," said Hiei, once again, his voice flat. He jerked his hand free of the human's and turned abruptly to head for the door.

"Wait!" called Kuwabara, "Where are you going?"

"To take care of this."

"NO! Hiei, you can't! You can't tell anyone! I shouldn't have even told you… Don't tell him; you can't. Please, Hiei. _Please!_" The fire demon paused by the door, indecisive. "Please, Hiei…" The human's voice was softer now, pleading with the undertone of a sob. "D-don't leave me a-alone right now…" With a frustrated growl, Hiei unclenched his grip on his sword and stood by the doorway a moment longer to get himself back under control. A moan from behind him broke his concentration, and he twisted to see Kuwabara once again shaking with sobs. Once again that new emotion raced through him, compelling him to Kuwabara's side. Unsure what he was doing, but letting his instincts take over, Hiei sat down beside the weeping human and pulled his head into his lap. Gently, he stroked the disheveled hair, letting his fingers trail down the bruised neck gently.

"I'm not going to leave you." The boy curled into Hiei's warm body and cried himself to sleep as the little demon's fingers soothed his aching body.

* * *

Did you like it? I have more ready to go, I'm just waiting for reviewer feedback! PLEASE let me know what you think! Yes, for anyone who was going to comment, I do rely on rape as a plot device far too much... Oh well. You know you liked it... REVIEW!!!! Much love!

Princess Seki


	2. Chapter 2

Ok, so I waited for a little while before I put this chapter up... To be honest, I felt that it needed just a little bit of work before I put it up to be read by all of you, so... there's your explanation. I am no longer sure if the other bit of the story I already have typed up will be posted as-is or not. I'm thinking it might need a bit more work before it's ready, but it WILL be coming in time! I tried to keep the characters in-character in this chapter, and I think I did a fairly good job. Let me know if you disagree; I take comments like those seriously if they have a solid basis. Thanks a million to all of my reviewers!! You keep me going, guys, so keep those reviews coming!

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho ro anything relating to it.

Warnings: None to speak of beyond a very small amount of light swearing. :)

* * *

It was dark in the room when Kuwabara finally woke again. Surprisingly, Hiei had kept his word, and was sitting on a stool beside Kuwabara's bed, his red eyes intent on the human's face. Kuwabara blinked once, then yawned and attempted to sit up. Hiei wasn't having it.

"Lay still, you're going to open your wounds again." A hand on Kuwabara's shoulder was all it took to keep him lying down. Hiei was deceptively strong.

An odd sense of contentment settled between the two for a moment, but Kuwabara couldn't ignore the nagging thought that was slowly churning in his head.

"Hiei… about yesterday…"

"What about yesterday?" The tone in the fire demon's voice made it clear that the subject wasn't open for discussion. Unexplainably, Kuwabara felt… upset about that. He frowned, opening his mouth to object to Hiei's no-discussion policy, then changed his mind and said something else instead.

"Where… am I, anyway?" Something flickered through the ruby eyes that were so intent on Kuwabara's own, but it was gone before the red-head could identify it.

"You're at Genkai's. Kurama couldn't explain it away to his mother, and there wasn't much room at Yusuke's. Genkai offered, so we brought you here. Kurama was here to help me mix the poultice for your wounds, and Yukina healed what she could in passing. She was headed back to Makai to follow up on a lead about her missing brother." Hiei's lips twitched as though he was stopping himself from laughing at an inside joke.

"What… time is it?" Kuwabara glanced out the window across the room, but it was dark outside. It was either very early or very late. Hiei shrugged, also glancing at the window.

"Just before sunrise. Genkai left a little while ago to go do something. I don't know what, don't bother asking."

"So… why are you still here?" Kuwabara was surprised by the fierce look that flashed across Hiei's face.

"I told you I would stay, so I did. I'm a man of my word." Rising abruptly, Hiei turned for a door. Fear of being alone flooded Kuwabara's system; his heart clenched painfully.

"You don't have to leave…" Hiei turned back, his face flat.

"You don't want breakfast?"

"Oh." Kuwabara felt a flush creeping over his face, so he looked down. Embarrassing as it was, he just didn't want to be alone right now…

"I'm not sure what you humans eat for breakfast," continued Hiei, speaking as though Kuwabara had not. "I suppose you don't eat meat like normal creatures?"

"Why are _you_ getting me breakfast?" Kuwabara hadn't meant to sound so ungrateful, but he was shocked Hiei _cared_ so much.

"Because I don't want you getting out of bed and ripping open your stitches _again_, and there's no one else here right now. I'm sick of sewing you up." Abruptly, anger flashed through Kuwabara.

"So sorry to be such a trouble! I'll take care of myself, you can go back to being an angry bastard now!" Hiei's eyes narrowed and his arms folded across his chest.

"I'll get you something from Genkai's kitchen. If you don't like it, tough shit." And then he was gone. Kuwabara glared after him, then felt badly for glaring and sighed. Hiei really _was_ being very kind; he supposed he ought to be grateful. It was obvious that care-taking wasn't really Hiei's usual thing…

In the kitchen, Hiei was flitting from cupboard to cupboard. What the hell did humans eat for breakfast? He tried to think back to the times he had stayed at Kurama's overnight. The fox demon usually made tea and sometimes he heated bread up in some sort of metal contraption. Tea… Hiei found a box in one of the cupboards that smelled about right, so he took that out and opened it. Inside were a number of small packets that were very obviously _not_ tea leaves. Frustrated, Hiei ripped one of the packets open and discovered an odd bag that _was_ full of tea leaves inside. He sniffed it a couple of times, then shrugged and set it in a cup of water, which he'd heated with his own energy. Hopefully that was right…

Next, the fire demon turned to the task of finding bread to heat up. Finally, he found a loaf inside a small box on the counter. Heating a couple of pieces with his own energy, he grabbed the cup of tea and went back to Kuwabara's room. The red-head was facing the wall again, the sheet pulled up to his neck. He'd better not have gone back to sleep…

"Get up, I brought you food."

"Thanks." The human attempted to sit up and was forced to stifle a yelp. He felt as though someone had taken a sledgehammer to his backside.

"Kuwabara?" Hiei's sharp eyes hadn't failed to notice the red-head's grimace.

"I'm fine," Kuwabara panted, "just a little sore. It's n-nothing…" Those red eyes narrowed with disapproval, but Hiei handed Kuwabara the food and mug.

"Here…" Kuwabara stared at the warm bread. It wasn't toasted… just heated. But he didn't want to seem ungrateful…

"Thanks." Hiei grunted, then turned for the door again.

"Genkai will be back soon and Kurama will be coming by later to mix up some more salves and such for your wounds. Do NOT get out of bed, understood?" Kuwabara blinked, frowning at the fire demon's back.

"I- You're not leaving, are you?"

"Yes…" Hiei turned back, his face showing annoyance. "I have some things to take care of. I think you'll be alright for an hour or so."

"Oh…" Things to take care of. Something clicked in Kuwabara's head. "Wait, you're not going to see Yusuke, are you?!" The demon's silence was all the answer Kuwabara needed. "Hiei, you can't! Don't tell him! You can't! It was nothing, I'm fine, leave it alone! Please, Hiei, _please_!"

"Calm down, you'll rip your stitches."

"I'll stop you by force if I have to! I won't let you tell him!" Kuwabara heaved himself from his bed and fell immediately to the floor; his stiff muscles refused to support him.

"Fool!" snapped Hiei, already at Kuwabara's side. He lifted the human back into bed, his movements far from gentle. "I swear to God, if you rip those damned stitches open again, I'll-"

"Don't you dare tell him!" Kuwabara's voice was fierce as he cut Hiei off mid-threat. "This is my business, not yours! It's not up to you to take care of this; I'll handle it by myself!"

"You can't fix a problem you won't admit you have," growled Hiei, glaring into Kuwabara's onyx eyes. "Yusuke raped you. You can't ignore that. If you don't have the balls to confront him about it, I will!"

"Why the hell do you care?! This isn't your problem!"

"This became my problem the moment you dragged me into it! Or do you not remember begging me to stay with you last night?" Hiei's glare was heated with some emotion Kuwabara couldn't identify.

"I'm sorry to have _inconvenienced_ you," snapped Kuwabara, also glaring. "I can take care of myself. Go ahead and leave, it's not like you give a shit about me anyway!" Hiei lurched back a step, his face unreadable. Guilt washed through Kuwabara and his tone instantly softened. "Hiei-" And then the fire demon was gone.

Frustrated, Kuwabara slammed his fist into the wall beside his bed, forgetting that it was already bruised from his encounter with Yusuke. Muffling a scream, the human cradled his now-broken hand as he let himself fall back onto his pillows and drift miserably to sleep.

-

Hiei couldn't stop the growl that burst from him as he flitted nimbly from tree to tree on his way back towards the ningen city.

"Damned fool!" He wasn't sure if he was talking about Kuwabara or himself. Why _had_ he stayed the night to watch the human sleep? Why _did_ he give a damn about him? And why the hell did he feel so protective of the big oaf all of the sudden?

Not that it mattered. Hiei wasn't going back; he didn't owe the human anything. He'd saved his life; wasn't that enough?! And yet… the fact that he wasn't going back was what upset Hiei the most. Emotions… bah! Unreliable, unpredictable annoyances, that's what they were. Pouring his concentration into running, Hiei pushed himself faster; running from those damned emotions… and the source of them.

By the time Hiei arrived at Kurama's house, he was calm again. The red-head was awake, bowed intently over something on his desk. Hiei slid the window open silently, pleased that Kurama had had the foresight to leave it unlocked for him. The fox always seemed to know when Hiei would be coming by…

"What are you working on?"

"Something for Kuwabara," Kurama answered, not bothering to look up.

"Hn." Hiei moved to peer over the former thief's shoulder for a few minutes, then retreated to the windowsill to sit.

"Something on your mind, Hiei?" Still, Kurama didn't look up.

"No. Mind your own business." Kurama suppressed a smile. He wasn't sure why Hiei still felt the need to hide behind his façade after all these years, but the little demon still refused to talk about his feelings when directly asked. He would speak when he was ready; Kurama had only to be patient.

The two demons sat in companionable silence for nearly thirty minutes. Silences between Hiei and Kurama were never awkward; such was the nature of their friendship. Finally, Hiei shifted slightly. Kurama's ears perked up; the koorime was ready to talk.

"I'm going back to Makai, Kurama." The silence that followed _was_ awkward. Kurama's hands froze in the midst of their delicate work. He mentally calmed himself.

"Pardon?"

"Dammit, fox, you heard me. I'm going back to Makai, I'm sick of the Ningenkai. Maybe I'll look Mukuro up or something, I don't know."

"Oh. I see." Only one who knew Kurama as well as Hiei knew him would hear the strain in his otherwise calm voice. Hiei waited for that new emotion to flood him again, but it didn't come.

"You know where to find me." He stood and turned to the window, one hand already holding it open.

"Hiei, wait." The fire demon paused, unexplainably _glad_ that he had been stopped. Kurama had turned to face him, the emotion in his large green eyes carefully masked. "What should I tell Yusuke and Kuwabara?" Hiei scowled.

"What the hell do I care what you tell them? Tell them I can't stand the stench anymore. Tell them whatever pops into your head. You're good at lying convincingly. Or don't tell them anything. I really don't care." He turned for the open window again.

"Before you go… did you find out what happened to Kuwabara?" The new emotion ripped painfully through Hiei's chest again. He stopped himself from spasming from the intensity of it.

"He was raped and beaten, you knew that."

"Yes, but did he tell you who did it?"

"No." And, with a grunt, Hiei heaved himself through the window and disappeared in a flash of black. Emerald eyes narrowed as Kurama frowned at the place his partner had been not half a second ago. Hiei knew something he wasn't willing to discuss…

-

Hiei was shocked. He had been able to lie successfully to Kurama for one of the first times ever. He had told the fox that he was going back to Makai, and Kurama had believed him. Of course, that may have had to do with the fact that Hiei actually _had_ intended to go back to Makai at the time he had told Kurama of his intentions. And yet there he stood, in the forest beyond Genkai's dojo, wrestling with that annoying new emotion.

Oh, Hiei had _started_ toward a portal. He'd made it more than halfway there before, without his conscious intention, he'd turned and begun the trek back to Genkai's. And now he stood, like an emotional fool, unsure of what he was doing. Why did he _care_ what happened to Kuwabara? Truthfully, he'd always found the boisterous human annoying and idiotic. _No_, a little voice in his mind corrected,_ you've never really given him the time of day. You've never even bothered to get to know him because he's only human._

Only human… The boy must have been made of tougher stuff than Hiei had given him credit for. After all, he had withstood a direct attack from Yusuke. Yusuke… Anger surged in Hiei's chest, flaring his aura. He controlled himself quickly, stamping out the small fire by his feet. Yusuke had raped Kuwabara. Yusuke would have to be dealt with… Confirmed in his decision, Hiei turned for Yusuke's house, but paused as he felt a familiar aura drawing closer. Well, speak of the devil…

Yusuke Urameshi strode into sight far in the distance, headed directly for the dojo. Without thinking, Hiei started back for the dojo as well, but stopped himself before he had gone more than a few steps. Kuwabara would _have_ to confront Yusuke about what had happened now. There was no need for Hiei to intervene. Not that he _cared_, he reminded himself. Still… Hiei wanted to make sure Kuwabara didn't rip his stitches or something while Yusuke was there. After all, _he_ would be blamed if Kuwabara died from ripped stitches. _Died_. The thought sent an unpleasant jolt down Hiei's spine. Before he knew what he was doing, he had darted through the dense underbrush of the forest back towards Kuwabara's window, and the well-placed tree just outside of it…

-

Kuwabara was asleep when Yusuke slipped quietly into his room. For half a second, Yusuke paused, studying his sleeping partner. Then, cracking an impish grin, he pounced on the sleeping teen. Kuwabara woke with a shriek and panicked to find himself not only in excruciating pain, but also pinned beneath the boy who had raped him not even a week prior.

"NO! YUSUKE, STOP!!" The raven-haired teen looked down, his grin fading instantly to a look of worry. He hadn't meant any harm; he and Kuwabara played pranks like this on one another on a weekly basis! But he had forgotten that Kuwabara was badly injured…

"Dude, I'm sorry! Are you ok?" Yusuke sprang from the bed, scared by the tears flowing freely down Kuwabara's cheeks. "D-don't cry, it's ok! I'm sorry, I forgot about your injuries! Don't cry!" The red-head was gasping, attempting to control himself and shake off the panic that had overtaken him. Yusuke was sober; he had been playing a prank. He was sober.

A branch cracked suddenly just outside the window and fell to the ground with a noisy crash. Yusuke and Kuwabara both jumped and Yusuke bolted to the window to see what was outside. It appeared that a large branch had simply snapped and fallen to the forest floor. No trace of anything unnatural… Yusuke turned back to Kuwabara, who seemed to have been jolted out of his panic by the surprise of the tree branch snapping. He was still huffing slightly, trying to calm himself completely, but the tears had stopped, and his eyes had lost the wild, hysterical look they had held only a moment earlier.

"I'm so sorry, man, are you alright?" The concern in Yusuke's eyes was genuine, yet it seemed so very wrong to Kuwabara. Those eyes would never look right to him again; not until they were narrowed maliciously once more, greedily drinking in the sight of Yusuke's conquest. Yusuke was no longer the innocent symbol of justice he had been before. And he _had_ been innocent. A few street fights and a dedication to protecting the human world from demons did _not_ a monster make. Yet now, having witnessed Yusuke's true inner beast, Kuwabara could not make himself see the innocence any longer.

"I'm fine, Yusuke, just a little sore." Kuwabara's eyes were wary, wondering why Yusuke had come to see him at all. He'd been pretty good about going to school ever since his and Keiko's relationship had blossomed; it wasn't like him to ditch for no good reason anymore. "What brings you out here so early?"

The black haired boy shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets and letting his usual, easy smile spread over his face. Walking to the bed, he plopped down unceremoniously, mindful not to touch Kuwabara, and relaxed back onto his elbows.

"Ah, I dunno. I figured it was a good excuse to skip school. Keiko can't yell at me if I'm off visiting my invalid friend, right?" He laughed, making as if to elbow Kuwabara in the ribs, then stopped himself and sat up instead. Abruptly, his face became serious. "Y'know, dude, I was talkin to Kurama this morning. He said it would help him treat you if he knew who'd beat you up so bad. He said Hiei knew, but wouldn't tell him." Kuwabara felt a silent rush of gratitude towards Hiei for keeping his secrets for him. "So anyway," Yusuke continued, "I promised him I'd ask you when I came by to see you. So how 'bout it? Who kicked the crap out of you?" Kuwabara hesitated for a moment, glancing away from the piercing brown eyes locked on his own. Then he saw it; a flash of black and white by the window.

"Was that Hiei?"

"Huh?" asked Yusuke, distracted. He glanced behind him, frowning. "Naw, dude, can't be. Kurama said Hiei got sick of us and went back to Makai for a while." Kuwabara's heart sank; he'd actually driven Hiei away? Some friend he was! Hiei cared for him, stitched up his wounds, and he told him to get lost? Yusuke turned back to the red-head, expression serious again. "Who did this to you?"

"I don't remember," muttered Kuwabara, his thoughts elsewhere. He glanced almost hopefully towards the window again, but there were no more flashes of black and white… His mind must have been playing tricks on him; Hiei was gone.

"What the hell, man? You'll tell _Hiei_ who hurt you, but you won't tell your best friend?! Hiei is an absolute asshole to you! Hiei doesn't even give you the time of day! Hiei-"

"Hiei doesn't know, Yusuke, calm down. He was making it up; I didn't tell him who it was." How Kuwabara wished he was speaking the truth… If he had just kept his problems to himself, none of this drama would have ever exploded. Angrily, Kuwabara's hands clenched into fists, but he unclenched them almost immediately as pain burst from his broken hand. "Ah! Dammit!"

"What? What's wrong?" Yusuke's eyes zeroed in on Kuwabara's swollen hand. "What the hell?! Your hand wasn't broken yesterday! Did Hiei do this?!"

"No! He may not like me, but he wouldn't hurt me!" growled Kuwabara, his teeth gritted against the pain.

"Then what happened?!" Kuwabara was _not_ in the mood to explain. He just wanted ice for his hand and a quiet room so he could sleep.

"I dunno, I fell or something, ok? Can you just get me some ice for my hand, please?" Yusuke's eyes narrowed; he could tell when he was being lied to. But he didn't push it.

"Sure, man, whatever you need." Turning, Yusuke went to hunt up some ice for his friend, puzzling over what Kuwabara was hiding. They didn't have secrets; it wasn't how their friendship worked…

Finally, Yusuke found a tray of ice buried in the back of the freezer and a plastic bag to put it in. He smashed the cubes a couple of times with his fist to crush them into softer bits, then covered the bag with a dish towel and brought it back to Kuwabara. The redhead was facing the wall when he came in, but Yusuke could tell from his posture that he wasn't sleeping. He was so tense…

"Here's your ice…" He paused, then sighed. "You alright, man? You seem… upset."

"I'm fine, just tired." Kuwabara still hadn't turned back to face Yusuke. "I think I'm just going to sleep, ok?" Yusuke scratched his head. He didn't want to leave Kuwabara alone when he was so upset, but it was very obvious that the redhead wanted him out. Finally, unsure what else to do, Yusuke turned for the door.

"I guess I'll just head to school, then… Do you want me to visit later? I can bring Keiko…" Kuwabara cringed; motherly Keiko was not someone he really wanted to see. He didn't want to be babied; he just wanted to be left alone.

"I guess you can come if you want. I'll probably just be sleeping."

"Oh." Silence. "I guess I'll just come by tomorrow or something. I mean, you'll be up and about soon, right?"

"Yeah, man, I'll see you in school in another day or two, ok?" Yusuke smiled; that was something the old Kuwabara would have said. That was a step in the right direction.

"Sounds good. Then we can hit the arcade. I'm running out of punks to murder at Goblin City!" Kuwabara gave a weak chuckle.

Yeah… Goblin City…" He sounded as though he was drifting off, so Yusuke left, shutting the door gently behind him.

Kuwabara sighed, still facing the wall. He was inexplicably _devastated_ that Hiei had left so abruptly because of _him_! He had actually driven someone away! To a whole different realm! And then there was Yusuke… trying to make it better. Yusuke, who had no clue what was going on. Yusuke, who hadn't the faintest suspicion that he_ was_ the problem… Kuwabara would not tell him. It had been decided. With Hiei gone, no one else knew, and Kuwabara intended to keep it that way. As far as he was concerned, the incident had never happened.

-

Hiei was _seething_. Not only had Yusuke _manhandled_ the boy he'd just spent a great deal of time patching up, but then Kuwabara had gone and let him leave without telling him the truth! Oh, how Hiei had longed to burst through that window and tell Yusuke exactly what he had done; make him pay for his crime… That was why the branch had broken, of course. Hiei actually _had_ begun to leap through the window, then stopped himself at the last second. The branch had snapped from his abrupt change in momentum. And then Kuwabara had caught a glimpse of him! Hiei'd had to move fast to stay hidden that time…

Quite suddenly, Hiei realized how foolishly he was acting. It was those damned emotions again, taking hold and running wild! This was too much. Perhaps a vacation to Makai wasn't altogether uncalled-for. He hesitated for a moment, half-turned towards the portal, then made his decision; he was going back to Makai. But there was that damned emotion again! Perhaps one last thing…

Kuwabara jerked upright suddenly as a familiar ki flared nearby. He glanced around wildly before settling his gaze on the potted plant on the windowsill… and the black flames that engulfed it. _Hiei_… He clambered out of bed, ignoring his protesting body, and all-but crawled to the window to look out. The forest was empty, of course… Kuwabara had known that it would be. But it didn't matter. The burning plant was proof. Hiei had been here, and Hiei was coming back…

* * *

Well? Did you like it? :) Just when things were getting good, Hiei goes off and leaves! But that's typical, of course. He'd rather run away than get too involved. Men... Anywho, I have part of the next chapter written, but I'm not sure I like it. It may be scrapped and completely re-written, I'm not sure yet. Review review review! Much love!

Princess Seki


	3. Chapter 3

Yay!! Another chapter done!! And it's one doozy of a chapter, believe me! I know it was an obscenely long wait between updates, but my medical problems acted up again and I have been attempting to recover from another surgery and catch up on my schoolwork all at the same time. Thanks a million to all of my lovely reviewers! You guys keep me going! Um, about this chapter... It's really freaking long and has a lot of breaks where it switches characters and such. I hope it's not _too_ confusing for you. I think it flows pretty well, but I can also see myself taking it down and revamping it eventually to make it better. Right, so I think I've rambled enough for the time being... ENJOY!!

Warnings: profanity, graphic violence (though it's very brief)

Disclaimer: As always, credit goes where credit is due: Yoshihiro Togashi and FUNimation Productions.

* * *

"Hello, Kazuma, dear. Shuuichi is up in his room, working on his homework. You can go on up." Kuwabara smiled at Kurama's mother as she stepped aside to let him through the front door, a motherly smile on her face. "Would you boys like some tea and cakes like usual?"

"Yes, ma'am!" Kuwabara's stomach rumbled with anticipation; Shiori's cakes were to die for! And he would know; he was over at Kurama's house nearly every day.

It had been well over six months since Hiei had disappeared without a word to anyone but Kurama, and no one had heard from him since. Kurama claimed that Makian rumors had him working for Mukuro, one of the three Demon Lords, but that meant nothing to Kuwabara. All he knew was that Hiei had abandoned them again, and it was seriously beginning to look like he wasn't coming back this time. Kuwabara still had the charred remains of the plant Hiei had left burning on his windowsill at Genkai's, but he wasn't so sure of its meaning anymore. Perhaps the plant had been a goodbye. Or maybe it meant nothing. Hiei had no attachment to him, no reason to leave anything for him!

"Hello, Kuwabara." Kurama's mellow greeting pulled the younger boy from his thoughts, which had taken a decidedly gloomy direction. It was astounding how Kuwabara's relationship with Kurama had not evolved. They had not grown closer; the connection between them was no deeper than it had ever been. The ex-thief was just as mellow and pleasant as he had always been. And for that, Kuwabara was both grateful and angry. Grateful that he was not forced to put up with pitying stares, open concern, and annoying, repetitive questioning of his well-being. Angry that the demon would not let him in, allow a deeper friendship to develop.

"Hey Kur-er Shuuichi." A flash in Kurama's green eyes was all the reminder Kuwabara needed that he had been dangerously close to saying something he was forbidden to say… again. Kurama did not like Kuwabara's little slip-ups. The first few times, Kuwabara had been given friendly, if rather stern, warnings to remember Kurama's human identity. After that, the fox had allowed his annoyance to become more obvious with pointed looks of reproval and minute gestures of displeasure. It was nothing major, but Kuwabara still felt brief thrills of fear every time he landed himself in the line of one of those chilling looks. Still, for the most part, Kurama was easy to be around, and helpful in all the most appropriate ways. He listened if Kuwabara wanted to rant, he offered advice if the human sought it, and he helped the boy with all of his schoolwork (Shizuru was happiest about the schoolwork, though Yusuke seemed to consider him a traitor for somehow earning respectable grades on his exams). And, most importantly, Kurama provided a safe haven for Kuwabara to run to when avoiding his best friend.

Kuwabara had _tried_ to go back to the way things had been before the incident. Upon returning to school, he'd sat with Yusuke during lunch and accompanied him to the arcade after school, but the dynamic was all wrong. The street fight Yusuke had gotten into at the arcade had been too much for Kuwabara's still-frazzled mind to handle, and Yusuke had found him in a comic shop down the street, staring blankly at the glossy pages he didn't even realize were upside down. That was the last time they'd "hung out," and the first day Kuwabara had shown up at Kurama's house.

The worst part of it all was that Yusuke wasn't angry that Kuwabara was reacting so inexplicably. No, he was uncharacteristically _understanding_ and _sympathetic, _albeit a bit confused. Kuwabara hated it. He wanted Yusuke to yell at him, threaten him, attack him like he had that night. He wouldn't-_couldn't_ see Yusuke as a kind person; because he couldn't hate a kind person. He couldn't hate his best friend. But he wanted to… He wanted monster-Yusuke back to rage against and blame and _loathe_. But he couldn't do that to his best friend.

So he sought solace at Kurama's house, drinking in the calm that seemed to permeate the air around the ex-thief. And while he was with the fox, Kuwabara felt fine. But as soon as he left, guilt crashed over him like a tidal wave. Yusuke had stopped calling him at home and inviting him to hang out after school. They still ate together at lunchtime, but they ate in silence and parted ways the moment the lunch bell rang. If Yusuke had any assignments from Koenma, he didn't tell Kuwabara about them. Keiko noticed, of course, but she seemed to be at a loss about what to do to fix the friendship.

"Here you are, boys, fresh from the oven!" Shiori's cheerful voice cut through Kuwabara's thoughts as the delicious smell of fresh tea-cakes began to saturate the room. "Kazuma, dear, what's wrong?" Shiori's suddenly urgent tone made Kuwabara jump and focus on her worried face.

"Huh-wha?" He saw Kurama giving him a guarded look from the corner of his eye. "Nothing, ma'am, I'm fine. I was just thinking about the play we're reading for literature class; it's real sad." He smiled, flashing her a thumbs-up. "These cakes smell delicious, thank you!" He snatched one and popped it into his mouth before he realized that it was still very hot from the oven. Letting out a pained yelp, he spat the offensive tea-cake into his hands, bobbled it for a moment, then dropped it onto the carpet at his feet. Kurama and Shiori stared, apparently at a loss for words, and an awkward silence fell for a moment. Then Shiori and Kurama both began to laugh and Shiori turned to go find the vacuum, still chuckling. Sheepishly, Kuwabara turned to Kurama, fully expecting to be reprimanded. The older boy merely smiled at him, also still chuckling.

"I suppose I should have warned you, but I figured you would not grab something fresh from the oven. My apologies, Kuwabara, are you hurt?"

"No, 'm fine," muttered Kuwabara, blushing bright red. "Sorry about your carpet. Let me clean it up."

"No, no, dear, I'll take care of it. You boys get back to your homework." Shiori was back, brandishing a small hand-vac. She tossed the good majority of the tea-cake back onto the tray with the others, but made sure to keep it separate from them so that Kurama and Kuwabara didn't try to eat it.

"But-"

"No buts! Go on, now!" Shiori used her hand-vac to shoo the boys back to their books, then bent to suck up the crumbs that had become embedded in the carpet fibers. She finished in short order and left with a cheerful "study hard!" as she closed the door behind her.

Kurama turned immediately to a thick volume titled _Advanced Biochemistry_ and began scanning its pages intently, but Kuwabara could not make himself focus. Instead, he poured tea for himself, then for Kurama, and sat staring into the cup. It was very good tea; Kurama had a special blend of leaves that he grew, which combined to create a very sweet, refreshing taste.

"Something on your mind, Kuwabara?" The psychic looked up, somehow unsurprised that Kurama had picked up on his mood.

"Have you ever been… I dunno… _afraid_ of someone?" Kurama nodded, his face serious.

"Yes. There have been many that I feared. But fear is a healthy emotion, because fear leads to caution."

"Yes, but have you ever been too afraid of someone? Like, can't be around them afraid?" Kurama frowned.

"Is this about Yusuke?" Kuwabara scowled, damning the fox for being so quick to pick up on things. He decided to lie.

"No, it's just a question. Has it happened to you?" Kurama studied his face for a long moment before responding.

"Yes, actually, it has. I'm sure you remember Karasu?" Remember him? How could Kuwabara forget the masked psycho who had blown Kurama to bits with his demonic bombs? Kuwabara nodded. "I was more frightened of him than I have been in a very long time. His very aura nearly sent me into panic every time he came near me."

"No way! You were so calm, bantering with him like that." Kurama smiled without amusement.

"I may have appeared calm to an outside observer, but had you been inside my head, you would have found me jumping from plan to plan, floating in an odd state of adrenaline-induced hyper-sensitivity. I was a wreck."

"Then why didn't you let Hiei fight him if he scared you so much? I bet he would have." Kurama shook his head.

"We must face our fears, Kuwabara. Karasu made himself into my own personal problem, so I had to answer his challenge. If I had not fought him, that fear would still be hanging over my head, affecting my performance. That was a battle of necessity, not so much choice. Do you understand?" Kuwabara frowned.

"Yeah, but if Hiei had killed him…"

"I would have had to live with the knowledge that I could not. I would know that something had overpowered me." As Kurama's words sank in, Kuwabara realized what he had to do. Kurama was right; he couldn't allow his fear of monster-Yusuke to affect his relationship with his best friend.

Kuwabara stood suddenly, nearly spilling his tea as he did. Kurama watched him impassively, his face a blank mask. He took the teacup from Kuwabara wordlessly when the psychic held it out to him and watched as the younger boy pulled on his jacket and turned for the door.

"I gotta go. Thanks for the tea." And then he was gone, leaving the door wide open behind him as he strode purposefully down the hall and out of sight. Kurama heard him exchange goodbyes with Shiori, then heard the front door open and close.

"Good luck…" he murmured, setting Kuwabara's teacup back on the tray. He looked back down at the book in his lap, but his mind was elsewhere, pondering the situation at hand.

When Kuwabara had first showed up at his house, some six months ago, Kurama had gotten the sense that his visit had less to do with seeing Kurama than with avoiding Yusuke. Obviously something had happened between the two to severely affect their friendship. Perhaps Yusuke had done something that made Kuwabara's still-recovering mind flashback to his abuse. He had thought that Kuwabara's fear of his best friend would be temporary; resolve on its own.

But as the weeks stretched into months, it had become apparent that Kuwabara was seeking to replace what he had lost from Yusuke in a new type of friendship with Kurama. The problem was that Kurama simply wasn't compatible with the type of friendship Kuwabara sought. Obviously he felt a certain affection for his human teammate, but he was not the type of person to form close, intimate friendships with most people. Hiei was, of course, the exception to that rule, but even _he_ did not know a good deal about Kurama. The fox was rather tight-lipped about his personal life, especially where it concerned his past. Kuwabara wanted a full-disclosure relationship, like he'd had with Yusuke. And it was not even so much that Yusuke and Kuwabara talked about their pasts with each other, but more that they had lived them together. Kurama had grown up centuries prior in a world Yusuke and Kuwabara could not hope to understand.

So Kurama had waited, allowing Kuwabara the time he needed to realize that his relationship with Yusuke was a necessary thing; irreplaceable. And, though it had taken longer than Kurama had expected, Kuwabara had finally come to that conclusion. It was the part about fear that had thrown Kurama off… He wasn't sure exactly what had happened between Yusuke and Kuwabara anymore to make Kuwabara "too afraid" to be around Yusuke, but he was fairly certain the humans would work it out by themselves. Either that, or Kuwabara would return and Kurama would be given another clue.

Satisfied, Kurama began once again reading the fine print of his biochemistry textbook…

-

Yusuke's mouth fell open in a small 'o' of surprise as he opened his front door and found Kuwabara on the other side. The two friends stared at one another for a moment, the silence thick with the words they did not say. Then Kuwabara forced a grin.

"I figured you needed someone to kick your ass at Goblin City. Wouldn't want you to get too full of yourself, Urameshi." And just like that, the months of silence and awkwardness were repaired, forgotten, forgiven. Yusuke grabbed a jacket and followed Kuwabara down to the street, where they met Keiko. She took one look at Yusuke and Kuwabara and smiled.

"Hey, Yusuke. Hey, Kuwabara. I was just on my way up to visit Atsuko. Where are you guys headed?"

"We're going to the arcade," replied Yusuke, a smile firmly in place on his face. "Dumbass here thinks he can beat me at Goblin City." Keiko rolled her eyes, still beaming.

"Yes, well, have fun. And don't pout when you lose, Yusuke, it makes you look like a poor sport."

"Hey!" But there was no trace of anger on Yusuke's face. He was far too delighted to have his best friend back. Keiko turned for the stairs, then paused and looked back over her shoulder.

"Oh, and Yusuke, I don't think I'm going to be able to make our dinner plans tonight. I'm really sorry, but I have a lot of studying to do."

"Yeah, yeah with the studying. Go on and study, then, bookworm." Still, Yusuke was smiling. Kuwabara smiled at her as well, knowing she had done that on purpose to give Yusuke more time to spend with him. Good old Keiko…

"Hey, enough stalling, Urameshi, let's go!"

"So eager to get your ass beat, huh?"

"Ha! Maybe in your dreams…" The friendly banter continued as the two teens headed off to make up for lost time.

-

Kurama's head snapped up as he felt Hiei's familiar energy nearing his house. The fire demon was back? How odd… he hadn't been lying when he'd told Kuwabara that Makian rumors had Hiei working with Mukuro. Setting aside his chemistry book, Kurama shut his door, then went and unlocked the window, staring outside curiously. Hiei loomed up suddenly, shoved the window open, and climbed inside.

Kurama blinked. Hiei looked _exhausted_. His clothes were battle-worn, he had minor injuries all over him, and his right arm was once again wrapped in bandages.

"What happened to you?" Hiei shrugged.

"Someone mouthed off to me. I'm hungry." He moved past Kurama to the remains of the tea cakes and shoved one into his mouth. Kurama stared for a moment longer, then composed himself.

"Where have you been? I heard you were working for Mukuro." Again, Hiei shrugged, shoving another tea cake into his mouth before he even swallowed the first. To anyone who didn't know him, it appeared that Hiei was simply hungry. To his partner, it was obvious that Hiei was using food as a stall tactic to avoid answering Kurama's questions. No matter; Kurama could be patient. He moved back to his desk and sat down, folding his hands patiently in his lap. Hiei shot him a suspicious look as he reached for his third tea cake, but Kurama waved a hand dismissively.

"No, please, keep eating. I can wait." Hiei scowled, refusing to be goaded by the fox's passive-aggressive jab, and continued chewing deliberately. Another tea cake was shoved in to join the first two; Hiei's cheeks were beginning to bulge. Kurama raised an eyebrow, his expression mild. "Mind you don't choke, Hiei." There was amusement in his tone.

Finally, with a great gulp, Hiei swallowed his mouthful of food and wiped his mouth on the back of his hand. Kurama opened his mouth to ask his question again, but Hiei immediately reached for another tea cake, a challenging smirk on his face. Kurama sighed, rolling his eyes. Hiei paused suddenly, the tea cake halfway to his mouth, and sniffed suspiciously.

"Why was _he_ here?" Kurama frowned, wondering who Hiei was referring to, then remembered Kuwabara's tea cake incident.

"Who, Kuwabara? He was just visiting. Why do you ask?"

"Kuwabara doesn't 'visit' with you." It was a statement, not a question. Kurama's frown deepened, unsure why Hiei was so angry.

"Actually, he's been here nearly every day since you left. I'm not sure what happened between them, but I'm fairly certain he was avoiding Yusuke."

"He's been avoiding Yusuke for six months?!" Hiei had gone from angry to furious, though Kurama could not see how Yusuke and Kuwabara's relationship had any bearing on him.

"He was, but I think he got over whatever was bothering him today. He was going to find Yusuke when he left my house."

"When was that?"

"A few hours ago… Why does this bother you so much, Hiei?"

"It doesn't!" he snapped, dropping the tea cake. "And what the hell did you put in these cakes? I feel sick!" Rising swiftly, Hiei bolted to the bathroom and locked the door behind him. Kurama stared at the door, perplexed, as his mind went to work decoding every last bit of Hiei's nonverbal communication.

-

Safely hidden behind the solid oak door, Hiei doubled over as the unidentified emotion swept through his body, accompanied by a surge of guilt. Why had he trusted that fool human to take care of his own problems?! For _six months_ he had avoided confronting Yusuke about raping him?! And he had run to _Kurama_ of all people?!

_'I should have stayed,'_ Hiei thought viciously, his anger directed only at himself. _'I should have made the fool confront Yusuke and been done with it. Hell, I should have confronted the boy myself! Never trust an idiot to do the right thing!'_

For six months, Hiei had avoided acknowledging the truth by immersing himself in nearly suicidal training with Mukuro's troops. Upon arriving at her headquarters, he had offered to train her troops under one condition: he was allowed to kill as many as he liked. She had countered with an offer as her advisor and training access with her elites. Her one stipulation had been that Hiei not kill her elites unless given sufficient reason to do so. He had agreed reluctantly because no better offer was available, and the arrangement had turned out to be beneficial for both sides. Hiei got his distraction; Mukuro got an advisor and some much-needed training for her elites.

Unfortunately, thoughts of Kuwabara had merely been repressed, not forgotten, and they had returned with a vengeance about a month prior to Hiei's return to the human world. He had tried unsuccessfully to push the thoughts from his mind again, but memories of Kuwabara's agonized face haunted his dreams on a nightly basis. Slowly, his reluctant mind had come to a startling conclusion: Kuwabara was important to him. No, not just important, _vital_ to his own peace of mind. Though he was still unsure exactly _why_ his own happiness was so contingent upon someone who had, for the longest time, been nothing more than an annoyance, the fact remained that it was true.

Following this revelation, Hiei had informed Mukuro of his intentions to return to the human world only to be met with hostility from her. She had demanded a reason, and when Hiei had refused to give one, she had accused him of treason and had him run off of her base. Word had spread quickly of Hiei's treachery, and his journey home had been far from peaceful. Everyone within the kingdom had apparently been out for his blood; which is not to say, of course, that any of them had had the pleasure of sampling it. Still, Hiei loathed being falsely accused. He fully intended to have his revenge upon Mukuro once the situation with Kuwabara was resolved.

But what _was_ the situation with Kuwabara? For some unknown reason, Hiei needed to Kuwabara to be happy in order for himself to be happy. So what was he supposed to do, follow the human around and shower him with kittens and sweet snow and other foolish human things? He did not have the time or patience for that. Nor did he have the resources to get those things. Hiei swore inwardly as his mind drew a blank. This was exactly the sort of thing he needed Kurama's help with, and yet this was the last thing he wanted the fox to know about! If only this entire situation had never happened to awaken that damned emotion, he would be living his life in Makai; free of humans and their complications!

Whatever was going to happen, Hiei knew that it would involve him seeing Kuwabara. Kurama had said that he was hanging out with Yusuke at the moment, so Hiei resolved to visit him that night and figure out what he was going to do from there. One thing was positive in his mind: whatever happened, he was going to settle this situation tonight and get on with his life. Firm in his decision at last, Hiei steeled himself against Kurama's inevitable queries and stepped back out into the red-head's room…

-

"Kazuma Kuwabara, you are officially the worst player Goblin City has ever had. Congratulations, the prize is a big fat pile of YOU SUCK!!" Yusuke and Kuwabara were strolling amiably down the street after a successful night spent frustrating themselves at their favorite game: Goblin City. Despite his loud-mouthed mockery, Yusuke had done only marginally better than his friend, but Kuwabara was content to let him have his fun. His and Yusuke's dynamic still hadn't returned to its previous state, and Kuwabara didn't want to do anything to upset the mending of their friendship. Besides, the night was almost over; he would be away from Yusuke soon enough.

"Yeah, well, winner gets to buy dinner." He smirked at his friend as they turned towards their favorite diner. Yusuke opened his mouth to shoot back some snarky reply when they heard a familiar voice behind them.

"Kazuma! Yusuke! Hold up a sec, guys!" The boys turned to see Shizuru running down the sidewalk towards them with two duffle bags over her shoulders. Kuwabara frowned, wondering what had Shizuru so upset; she never ran like that unless there was trouble.

"Hey, sis, what's up?" Shizuru brushed her hair back as she caught her breath, then immediately pulled out a cigarette.

"Wow, I'm glad I found you. Keiko said she thought you guys were going to go eat after you went to the arcade. Listen, baby bro, there's been a gas leak on our block, so you can't come home tonight. I'm going to go stay with Kaia. It's up to you whether you come and stay there with me or go somewhere else. She said you're welcome if you want to come." Kuwabara sighed, weighing his options. He could go to Kaia's and become her human hairstyle tester (she was in cosmetology school, still striving to pass the exam for licensure; Kuwabara was quite certain she would never pass), or he could go to Kurama's and see if he could beg a night or two under his roof. He was pretty sure the ex-thief would agree, but that would most likely lead to more awkward conversations Kuwabara didn't want to have. Still, it might be better than-

"Hey man, don't stress. You can come crash with me until your house gets de-gas-ified." Yusuke clapped Kuwabara on the shoulder with a grin. Kuwabara froze, his muscles clenched almost painfully as memories of his last "sleep-over" with Yusuke flooded his mind.

"Hey, sounds great," said Shizuru brightly, draping the smaller duffle bag around her brother's neck. She turned in the direction she had come from. "I'm off to Kaia's, call me if you need anything. And don't forget to thank Atsuko!" The last part was shouted over her shoulder; almost an afterthought as she disappeared into the distance. Yusuke turned to his friend with a grin.

"My mom just bought a new case of beer and a couple bottles of sake for a party that she didn't even end up going to. I'm sure she won't mind if we take a few off her hands." He elbowed his friend playfully, trying to get a response out of his suddenly frozen form. Kuwabara could not make his body respond to his friend's light-hearted antics.

No no NO! This was all wrong! This was exactly how the incident had begun! A few beers, some good-natured joking, a disturbing drunken confession… and then rape. Kuwabara shuddered, his frozen muscles unlocking as they spasmed harshly. Yusuke stared at him, unsure.

"You know, I don't wanna burden you. I can go stay at Kaia's, it's no big deal." Kuwabara hoped his face was as casual as he thought it was. Yusuke frowned at him.

"Seriously, it's fine. You know my mom won't care. She probably won't even be conscious long enough to know you're there."

"Nah, don't worry about it. I'm sure my sis would rather I was with her." Yusuke's eyes narrowed as he studied his friend. He could tell when he was being rejected…

"You don't _want_ to stay at my house?" There was a poorly-hidden note of resentful disappointment in Yusuke's voice. The rejection was strong in his eyes, and even his aura seemed to dim a little. Kuwabara softened in spite of himself. If he was going to give Yusuke a second chance, he deserved a _full_ second chance.

"Naw, man, I just didn't want to bug you. If you're sure it's cool, I'm there." The effect was instantaneous. Yusuke brightened visibly; even his aura.

"You know you've got a standing invitation. C'mon, let's go set up the couch for you." Kuwabara nodded, shouldering his duffle bag, and followed his friend along the familiar path to his apartment with a gnawing fear growing in the pit of his stomach.

-

Hiei looked up as he heard someone approaching, then scowled to see that it was the wrong member of the Kuwabara family. He stayed still, allowing himself to melt back into the shadows outside Kuwabara's house, and hoped she wouldn't notice him.

"Hey, Hiei…" Shizuru's voice sounded uncertain. "Kazuma said you were in the Makai…" Hiei stopped himself from muttering a few choice swear words; he had forgotten that psychic sensitivity ran in the family.

"I was and I'm back. Where is your brother?" Shizuru looked confused.

"Um, I'm pretty sure he's staying at Yusuke's tonight. There was a gas leak, so we can't go home- Hey! Where are you going?" But Hiei was gone before she even finished her sentence. He wasn't sure _why_, but the unknown emotion compelled him to see Kuwabara… tonight. A strange feeling of trepidation was growing in him as he raced towards Yusuke's house.

-

"No, seriously, Yusuke, I'm fine. I don't want another beer."

"Aw c'mon, man, you've only had, like, two!" Yusuke's outstretched hand clutched a can of the premium beer Atsuko had left in the fridge, offering it to his friend with a drunken smile on his face. Exactly _how_ Yusuke had managed to get so drunk so fast was something Kuwabara was still trying to puzzle out, but the fact remained that the spirit detective was absolutely _hammered_.

"Don' go light-weight on me now, Kuwabara! Or are you admittin' that' I c'n out-drink you?" Yusuke's taunting edge was lost among his drunken slurring. Kuwabara took a step back, trying not to panic. Yusuke was just drunk; he hadn't tried anything. Kuwabara wouldn't run away. He was a man, he could handle it!

"Dude, you're smashed. Let's just go watch TV or something, ok?" Why, _why_ had Atsuko decided to go to some dumb party tonight? Not that she would be able to do anything against Yusuke's beast-like strength- No! Everything was fine; Yusuke was just a little drunk. This happened all the time; there was no need for Kuwabara to panic.

"Yeah, ok." Yusuke's compliant tone eased some of Kuwabara's fears. They would probably end up watching TV until Yusuke passed out. Kuwabara would be fine.

Yusuke stumbled into the living room and plopped down on the couch with a grunt. Kuwabara sank down on the floor, resting his back against the couch as he forced himself to remain calm. Yusuke deserved a full second chance. The incident before had been a freak accident. Everything was fine now.

After a few minutes, Yusuke became very quiet behind him. Assuming that the Spirit Detective had passed out, Kuwabara began to relax. Then he felt Yusuke's hot breath on the back of his neck.

"Wanna know a secret?" Kuwabara froze. He could smell the alcohol that saturated Yusuke's system and clouded his mind. Slowly, he turned back to look into the eyes that had haunted his dreams for the past six months; the eyes of a monster.

Kuwabara yelled and threw himself away from the drunken monster on the couch. Yusuke's eyes followed him; the warm brown seeming to harden and take on a reddish tint. Kuwabara's Spirit Sword materialized in his hand; his heart thumped unevenly as his nightmare began to unfold the same way it had so many times in his dreams… except this time he wasn't dreaming.

"Yusuke, I'm not shitting you! I swear to God, if you come any closer I'll-"

"We both know that I'm stronger, Kazuma…" That voice! It wasn't Yusuke's friendly voice that issued from his mouth, but something infinitely more sinister; the sly tone reminded him of Kurama's alter-ego, Youko. Kuwabara took another step back as Yusuke sat up, his eyes far more focused than any drunkard's should have been. "Just like we both know that you enjoyed what I did to you last time. Don't think I didn't notice that not all of your moans were pained. And your body's reactions… marvelous!"

"Y-Yusuke, stop it!" Kuwabara had taken another step back, panic over-taking him. He was about to take another step back when something rushed by him and Hiei materialized on top of Yusuke, his sword pressed to the Detective's throat.

"I don't know who the hell you are, but believe me when I say that I have no qualms about killing this human if it means killing you as well." Hiei's voice was like cold steel; Kuwabara had never seen him quite like this before.

"You won't kill him," purred the sly voice. Kuwabara gaped at his words; what was going on?! "He's your friend, your teammate. And besides, it would get you arrested again…"

"I'll do whatever I have to do to destroy you." Hiei's voice was flat, cold. The blade pressed a little harder to Yusuke's neck; blood began to bead around the blade. Yusuke's eyes widened slightly, but his voice remained steady.

"I don't believe you."

"Very well." Hiei drew back his sword, then swung it forward; death in his movements.

"NO!" Yusuke's body shuddered once as some greenish substance poured from his mouth, materializing into a snake-like demon. Hiei dropped Yusuke's body, his sword millimeters from the boy's neck, and swung around to plunge the blade into the snake's body instead. It let out a piercing scream and a thick black liquid fountained around Hiei's sword. Kuwabara could do nothing but stare, his Spirit Sword hanging limply by his side. As of yet, Hiei had not even acknowledged his presence…

Finally, Hiei turned back to him, and his face was kinder, softer than Kuwabara had ever seen it. His eyes held concern and… something else Kuwabara had never seen in them before.

"Are you alright?" There was an odd tone to Hiei's voice that contrasted so sharply with the cold steel Kuwabara had heard before that he almost thought it was a different person speaking.

"What just happened?!" Kuwabara wanted to go check Yusuke, to examine the slain monster, to do _anything_ but stand there like an idiot, but his muscles were still locked in place. "What the fucking hell just happened?!" Cautiously, it seemed, Hiei took a step closer to Kuwabara, his eyes intent on the human's panicked face.

"Calm down, Kuwabara. Release your sword; there's no need for it." Hiei was still speaking in that odd tone, but his voice took on an edge of command.

"No! Tell me what the fucking hell just climbed out of my best friend's body!" Kuwabara's sword-hand twitched, his eyes flicking swiftly between Hiei, Yusuke, and the bleeding corpse on the floor.

"It was a demon, obviously. One that excelled at possession and host manipulation. Yusuke was trapped within his own body." Hiei took another cautious step forward, his red eyes locked with Kuwabara's panicked black eyes. "Put the sword away, Kuwabara; you're panicking."

"And is Yusuke ok?" prompted Kuwabara, his voice wavering as his body tried desperately to cope with the surplus of stress.

"He's fine, I barely nicked his neck. Now put that God-damned sword away!" Kuwabara twitched again, then finally let his Spirit Sword dissipate. He fell forward at once as his over-stressed mind shut itself down. Hiei sighed; he had expected as much.

Snatching Yusuke's unconscious body from the couch, Hiei deposited him in his bed, then returned to the living room, scooped Kuwabara into his arms, and gently laid him on the couch. The red-head was certainly down for the count, but he would wake up eventually; he just needed time for his frazzled mind to process everything it had just endured. As for Yusuke… Hiei wasn't sure what to do to help someone recover from demonic possession. Perhaps Genkai would be of use in this situation. But Kuwabara… Hiei glanced at the psychic's sleeping form and decided that he had more than enough time to fetch Genkai and return before he woke up.

A moment later, Hiei leapt lightly from the window and sprinted off in the direction of Genkai's complex.

* * *

Wow, that was one hell of a long chapter! Yeah, I know, it was a lil boring sometimes, but I did the best I could! I hope no one is TOO disappointed by this chapter. In any case, this should keep you all from going rabid on me as I try to juggle work, school, being annoyingly sickly, and writing. Please review!! MUCH LOVE!!

~Princess Seki


End file.
